January 14, 2010

 Here’s something you may find pretty interesting.  I know I did. Just the other day, I had to take my wife to see her cardiologist. As it happens, he’s a bit like me, in that he’s what’s called an interventional cardiologist, meaning he does angioplasties and stents (which is almost like surgery), but he’s also a very holistic guy. He recommends supplements and fish oil to his patients.
 
Sometimes, he writes them prescriptions for a prescription form of fish oil, which is covered by those with prescription plans. But other times, when NOT covered by insurance, this same brand of fish oil, though very high quality, is frightfully expensive. And by expensive, I mean nearly three times as costly as my POWERHOUSE OMEGA FORMULA, an ultra pure, pharmaceutical grade fish oil, with a special enteric coating, that prevents the softgel from dissolving in the stomach.
 
http://www.favoriteformulas.com 
 
That enteric coating, which the prescription fish oil does NOT have, virtually prevents any fishy aftertaste or fish burps, which trouble some people, who would otherwise benefit from the concentrated omega-3 fatty acids in my formula.
 
The point is, he, like me, is a card carrying, bona fide member of the medical establishment. Yet, he tries to see the whole person, not just the heart, and he makes the natural healing treatments, that work, available to his patients. And he gives the impression of being very, very sharp and competent. As a person of Indian extraction, he has the whole Depak Chopra thing down, pat. And that is a source of great comfort to his patients and to me.
 
In any case, he was reviewing my wife’s case, making recommendations and adjustments to her treatment regimen, including some dietary changes and getting more exercise, like walking and the knee pain exercises I teach in my PAIN-FREE PROGRAM and new DVD   http://www.drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html  She has some knee pain, too, mainly from carrying a bit too much poundage and having some weak muscles around the knee. 
 
You’d think that having me right with her, and there all the time, would inspire her to jump right into the program. But as Kahlil Gibran once wrote, “A prophet is forever without honor in his own land.” She pays no attention to me. She has to ask someone else, you know, a “real doctor,” before she’ll do anything I recommend. People came from all over, other cities, other states and other countries to get my opinion, at great expense, but that doesn’t matter to her. Nope. You know what they say about familiarity and contempt? But I digress…. 
 
His cell phone rang and he answered. Then he made another rapid call and started dictating rapid orders to the nurse at the Cardiology Unit of Florida Hospital.  It seems that another cardiologist had seen this patient, a middle aged guy, who had developed chest pain and broken out into a cold sweat for 15 minutes, while lifting barbells. Now, given this history, any physician, not to mention a cardiologist, would have had this guy admitted to the hospital ASAP, because the odds are great that he had an infarction (heart attack).
 
But no. This cardiologist sent this guy HOME and scheduled a stress test for him, THE NEXT DAY!  Good chance that he would not have made TO the next day and if he had, he certainly would have coded during any attempt at a stress test! So my friend took matters into his own hands, admitted the guy for stabilization and an immediate angiogram (where dye is injected into the coronary arteries, to visualize any blockages in the arteries, which can then be opened, with a stent).
 
He just shook his head and said, you know, you’re an orthopod, not a cardiologist. Yet YOU would have known that this guy had likely had an MI and had him admitted to the ER immediately. But his “cardiologist” sends him home! Unbelievable! Some of these guys, despite their education, just have no medical intelligence.” 
 
All too true. And a good illustration of when a medical procedure IS really necessary. I teach the same concept in my newest healing program,  HOW TO AVOID KNEE SURGERY   http://www.drbillsclinic.com/avoid_knee_surgery.html 
 
where, before we discuss the various ways to relieve pain and keep you OUT of the operating room, we first talk about those circumstances when surgery IS needed, often on an urgent basis. The idea is to avoid surgery when you CAN, but get it in a timely fashion, when that’s the optimal treatment. 
 
So, my friend left us to go tend this new patient, who should be thanking his lucky stars that my friend was involved. Else he’d be worm food, by now.
 
That’s why it’s so very important to choose your doctors wisely. They all have the same degree–but NOT the same levels of skill, compassion and JUDGMENT. And that difference can mean life or death to you. So interview any doctor you see and ask questions. If you’re not comfortable, or getting answers, go elsewhere.
 
Til next time, my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow and your optimal health,
 
Dr. Bill
 
“The Wellness Warrior”   TM
 
P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html 
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html 
 
P.P.P.S. For conventional and alternative treatments and exercises to relieve knee pain without surgery click on http://drbillsclinic.com/avoid_knee_surgery.html 
 
P.P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html 
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2010 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD, FACS
All rights reserved